by Dani Pettrey
“Premature? He was caught in the act.”
“They didn’t actually witness him slit her throat.”
“Close enough.”
“I’m not willing to put someone behind bars for the rest of his life for ‘close enough.’” While it didn’t appear that Reef was innocent, Landon could legitimately fight for time—time to conduct a thorough investigation. Unfortunately, Slidell was fighting equally as hard to take that time away. Hungry for a conviction, he was trying to push Reef’s case through the express lane.
While Landon couldn’t in good conscience argue Reef’s innocence, he could argue the importance of a methodical investigation.
“I thought we agreed that this wasn’t going to be a problem. That you’re a professional and would not allow your friendship with Reef’s family to cloud your judgment.”
“It won’t cloud my judgment. Just as I hope your desire for reelection won’t cloud yours.”
Slidell rocked forward. “That’s the second time you’ve insinuated that I’d put an innocent man behind bars to better my chances in the election.”
“I’m simply stating that a thorough murder investigation cannot be rushed. It’s barely been twenty-four hours.”
“Don’t worry. I’m sure you will have plenty of time to conduct your investigation while Reef’s awaiting trial, but in the end I’m confident your efforts will show nothing but evidence of that boy’s guilt. The D.A.’s moving quickly on this. Arraignment’s only a couple hours away.” Slidell got to his feet. “I’m going to grab some breakfast. You want me to bring you anything?”
“No thanks.” He had no appetite.
Slidell studied him a moment, then tapped the doorway on his way out.
Landon sighed. Only a couple more hours to find something, anything, that might suggest Reef’s innocence.
Of course, Piper expected him to simply take Reef at his word, but he couldn’t. It would be one thing if it was Cole or Piper or any of the rest of them he’d spent nearly every day with, but Reef was different. He’d barely seen Reef in close to a decade, and prior to that, they’d hardly been close. He couldn’t overlook hard evidence for the word of a man he hardly knew, let alone a man he didn’t trust.
Gage shook his head as the cameras flashed and reporters chattered. “Could this get any worse?”
“I don’t think so,” Cole said, coming to stand beside him.
Bailey clasped Cole’s hand in hers. “I’m worried about Piper.”
Gage followed Bailey’s gaze across the crowd to his sisters—Kayden, strong and stalwart; Piper, a mixture of fiery sadness. If Reef was found guilty, if he was—heaven forbid—guilty, Piper would never be the same. None of them would.
Reef had always been irresponsible; a risk taker with no concern for his bodily safety or, at times, the needs of others—but a killer . . . ? It’d been years since Reef left home, but Gage still knew his brother. Didn’t he?
“Thank you for coming,” Slidell said, cutting through the din of reporters.
With the Freeride Competition being in Yancey, the media exposure in town had grown from Jason with the Tribune to nearly a dozen reporters from across the country, and a handful from around the world. Now his brother’s name and picture would be broadcast to the world as the lead suspect in a murder investigation.
“I want, on behalf of all of us in Yancey, to express our deep sorrow over the malicious death of a young athlete with a bright and promising future ahead of her. I am pleased to announce that we have the suspect in custody and he will be arraigned shortly.”
A bevy of hands rose in the air as questions spewed from the reporters.
“What was his motive?”
“Did he know the victim?”
Slidell lifted his hand. “I am not able to comment on the specifics of the case at this time.”
“Rumor has it that it was a lovers’ spat. A revenge killing.”
“Rest assured we are conducting a thorough investigation. That is all for now.” Slidell stepped from the spotlight without a glance in the McKennas’ direction and retreated down the hall.
The reporters dispersed, moving into the courtroom to await Reef’s arrival. His arraignment hadn’t even taken place and they were already pronouncing him guilty. Vultures.
“Do you want to go in?” Cole asked.
“And be surrounded by reporters? I’d rather wait out here. At least until it’s time for Reef to come in.”
“I have a feeling it’ll be a while yet,” Cole said, taking a seat with Bailey on one of the wooden benches lining the courthouse foyer. “The D.A. isn’t even here.”
“Or the defense attorney,” Piper said, pacing by.
“He’ll be here,” Gage assured her.
“He better be.”
“Sit down while we wait. You look exhausted.”
“Because she stays up at night playing Nancy Drew.” Kayden yawned, slumping down beside Cole on the bench.
“What?” Gage narrowed his eyes.
“Yeah,” Cole said, stretching out. “Landon told me about that.”
“Landon?” Kayden looked up at Piper. “You didn’t go to him with your break-in theory, did you?”
“Break-in?” Gage and Cole said in unison.
“There was no break-in,” Kayden assured them.
“How can you be certain?”
Kayden sighed. “Because nothing was stolen.”
“What if they couldn’t find what they were looking for?”
“What who was looking for?” Gage asked.
Cole leaned forward. “Landon didn’t say anything about a break-in.”
“Then what did he say?”
“Instead of heading home when we left the station after visiting Reef, Piper went to the lodge to get his things.”
“That’s where you were?” Kayden asked.
Piper shrugged. “I just wanted to get Reef’s stuff.”
“Okay, but what’s this about a break-in?” Gage asked. “You think someone broke into Reef’s room?”
“Reef’s room?” Piper cocked her head. “Hmm. I hadn’t considered that.”
“Great.” Kayden sighed. “Fuel her nonsense.”
“Why do you assume it’s nonsense?”
Gage clamped a hand on her slender shoulder. “Why don’t you start at the beginning. . . .”
Piper relayed her theory that something wasn’t right in the house, that numerous things appeared disturbed, and that she feared Rori had been drugged.
Gage rubbed his brow. It did sound like Piper was overreacting, but then again, Piper’s gut reactions had an alarming accuracy. But why? Why would someone break into the girls’ house and not take anything? “How was Rori the next morning?” he asked.
“Perfectly fine,” Kayden said.
“Actually, she was super thirsty,” Piper added.
“Because she’d slept in front of the fire all night,” Kayden countered.
“Look, I know it sounds a little out-there, but I have a really strong feeling about this.”
“Understood,” Gage said. “Let’s just try to figure out if there are any other plausible explanations.”
She linked her arms across her chest. “I’m all ears.”
Still unsatisfied with her family’s supposedly plausible explanations, Piper strode to Cole. “Where’s Reef’s lawyer? The arraignment was supposed to start five minutes ago.”
“He’ll be here. Besides, I wouldn’t worry too much—the D.A. isn’t even here yet.”
“What if he missed the ferry or doesn’t make it?”
“God will get him here,” Cole said, his steadfast gaze calming her.
What would she do without her big brother always there to protect her? Just as Landon had always been, until . . .
She exhaled.
Things hadn’t been right between them in months. Instead of drawing them closer, as tragedy often did, the events of last summer had pulled her and Landon apart. At first she’d attributed
Landon’s distance to some kind of punishment for continuing to date Denny against his wishes, or even foolishly considered the possibility that maybe, just maybe, he’d finally realized she was an adult and the distance was his awkward attempt to show her he wouldn’t be meddling anymore. But he’d only grown more distant, and while she thought she’d be thrilled to not always have him in her business, the truth was she missed him. Missed his twisted, dry sense of humor . . . missed his annoying manner . . . missed him, period. Didn’t he realize how much she needed him now? Needed him to listen, to trust her enough to look beyond the obvious. Reef didn’t murder Karli. Someone else had. If Landon could only get beyond his black-and-white mentality, he’d see that.
She grimaced. Why did he have to be so muleheaded? So by the book?
The front door swung open, and a gust of frigid wind swirled in, ruffling the hem of her skirt. The cold bit at her cheeks, her fingers.
All heat was gone—dissipated in an instant by the stark reality of winter. The hope of the new arrival being Harland Reeves, the defense attorney they had hired, vanished, and shock stole its place as quickly as the wind had swallowed the warmth. Meredith Blake.
“Mer?” Gage said, his voice cracking.
7
“Hello, Gage.” Meredith’s tone held no trace of shock, no real emotion of any kind. She pulled the leather gloves from her hands one finger at a time.
Piper watched Gage take a tentative step toward Meredith, so many emotions battling for purchase. “What are you doing here?” he asked.
It was too much to hope that Meredith had heard what was happening to Reef and rushed back to Yancey after so many years just to lend legal and moral support. With Meredith there was always an ulterior motive, and when it came down to it, she simply wasn’t that nice.
“Prosecuting a case,” she said matter-of-factly.
Gage’s face paled. “Not my brother’s?”
Meredith tried to slip an errant strand of blond hair back into her tightly woven bun. Despite the rigid do, she was still strikingly beautiful. Distinct almond-shaped eyes the color of warm mocha, high cheekbones, and full lips. It was no wonder Gage had fallen for her and her exotic beauty. They all had. But that was before they realized the truth of who she was and the pain she was capable of inflicting. “Yes,” she said, finally getting the wayward hair to comply. “That’s correct.”
“You haven’t set foot in Yancey in nine years and you chose prosecuting my brother for murder as the time to come back?”
“Your brother made the choice for me when he killed Karli Davis.”
“Why this case? You could have passed. You had to know it was him.”
“I’m a professional. I prosecute the cases I’m given, but I don’t expect you to understand that.”
“Is it even ethical?” Piper asked, her ire fully riled. “You know the defendant.”
“Correction. I knew the defendant. It’s been close to a decade, and he was just a kid the last time I saw him. So, yes, I can ethically prosecute him, and I intend to do so to the fullest extent of the law.”
“But you knew Reef,” Gage said, agony weighing down his words.
Piper’s heart ached. Meredith was about to destroy their family all over again. Set aside caring, didn’t she possess a single ounce of human compassion? Had she no mercy? No sense of decency? How could she stand there, emotionless, and threaten to destroy another member of their family? A family that had once loved her so dearly.
“Mer?” Gage said, breaking through the haze of Piper’s thoughts. “You knew Reef. He hasn’t changed.”
Meredith draped her wool dress coat over her arm. “Does anybody ever truly know anyone?”
Gage’s jaw tightened, the tiny muscle in his right cheek quivering. “I guess not.”
Piper rested a hand on Gage’s back as Meredith left them standing there and entered the courtroom.
“She’s not worth it,” Kayden said. “She never was.”
Gage’s hands balled into fists at his sides.
The front door blew open, ushering in another gust of arctic chill as Reef’s lawyer, Harland Reeves, entered.
Piper sat on the courtroom’s wooden bench, not so unlike the pews they’d grown up sitting on at church. Her mind flashed back to Reef—curly blond hair, bright blue eyes, and full of mischief—crawling under said pews during the service, much to their parents’ amused consternation. But they could never stay stern with him for long. He’d say sorry, smile, and all would be forgiven.
Now . . . ? She shook off the thought. Her brother wasn’t trying to get away with something. He was innocent. He’d given his word, and she knew his heart. Mischievous, reckless, and even rebellious, Reef was also tender and gentle and hated to see anyone or anything suffer. He couldn’t have killed Karli.
Her gaze darted to the growing crowd gathering inside the courtroom. In a town Yancey’s size it took no time for news to spread. Surely by now just about everyone had heard. She wondered if those present came to offer their support or to gawk. Sadly, she imagined it’d be a mix of the two.
Meredith sat at the prosecutor’s table, her legal pad and pen before her. She didn’t bother looking back. How could she prosecute Reef?
So many emotions tumbled through Piper, but the nagging feeling that someone had been in their house wouldn’t let go. While it was odd that nothing had been stolen, it didn’t ease her suspicions. The back door had been locked. Kayden said so, and her sister was meticulous about stuff like that. Rori hadn’t been herself. That all of it would simply be a coincidence—as her siblings believed—on the night her brother was falsely accused of murder seemed even more far-fetched than her theory of someone breaking in. But why had nothing been taken, and how could the break-in possibly link to Reef being falsely accused of a crime? She sighed. Maybe Kayden was right and her imagination was running amuck. She was tired and scared and sad. It was like being stuck in a nightmare she couldn’t escape.
Landon glanced back at her from his position in the first row.
Unreasonable as it was given the circumstances, she wanted him at her side. Wanted his strong, protective arm draped across her shoulders. Wanted his cedar aftershave to soothe her the way it always had in the past.
She wanted . . . She bit her bottom lip with a grimace. This was not the time to be thinking about what she wanted and certainly not the time to be thinking about Landon. All her energy needed to be fixed on Reef and on proving his innocence.
The side door opened, and her breath caught as her brother emerged handcuffed and being led in by Deputy David Thoreau.
Dark splotches rimmed Reef’s eyes and an air of disbelief marked his steps. His bloodshot eyes held Piper’s gaze. He trusted her to sort out the mess he was in, and she would. One way or another, she’d prove his innocence.
Reef’s attorney conversed with Thoreau, and after a brief and somewhat heated discussion, Reef’s cuffs were removed.
Reef rubbed his wrists and took a seat. Piper studied the attorney Landon had recommended from his years in Fairbanks. Harland Reeves was tall, lean, and athletic. Probably early fifties, though it was hard to tell for sure. He wore a decent suit but nothing too fancy. He leaned in to speak with Reef, his focus fixed on his client. She prayed he was as good as Landon claimed, that he could protect her brother from a crime he didn’t commit.
The court clerk cleared his throat. “All rise for the honorable Judge Morrell.”
Piper rose. Cole rested a hand on her back, letting her know he was right there. He was always there. She prayed he’d be there for Reef too, despite their differences over the years. While Cole was probably the last person Reef wanted on his side, he was going to need Cole’s strength to get through this ordeal. More importantly, he needed Jesus. Maybe this would be what it took for Reef to be willing to talk about Him.
Judge Maureen Morrell entered. Her dark hair, streaked with silver, was pulled back in her trademark French twist. In her late fifties, she had aged remarka
bly well. Her pale skin contrasted her dark hair and eyes in a striking manner.
Piper and she passed each other on the street almost daily—Piper on her way to their family shop, Last Frontier Adventures, and Judge Morrell on her way to the Polar Espresso for her morning mocha. Piper never thought they’d be meeting like this. It seemed unfathomable that Maureen Morrell held her brother’s life in her hands.
“Please be seated,” Judge Morrell instructed. “Mr. McKenna, the purpose of this proceeding is to advise you of your rights, advise you of the charges against you, and to set conditions for bond, if that is appropriate in your case. I see you have counsel present.”
Harland stood. “Harland Reeves for the defense, Your Honor.”
Meredith stood. “Assistant District Attorney Meredith Blake, on behalf of the people, Your Honor.”
“All right, Ms. Blake, are you ready to proceed in this arraignment matter?”
“Yes, Your Honor. At this time the people would file, with this court, a complaint against the defendant Reef McKenna, date of birth, July 20, 1987. The people are filing one count of first-degree murder.”
“And, Mr. Reeves, have you advised the defendant of his constitutional rights?”
“Yes, Your Honor.”
“Good, then let’s proceed. Will the defendant please rise.”
Reef got to his feet.
“Do you understand the charges against you?”
“Yes, Your Honor.”
“And how do you plead, Mr. McKenna?”
“Not guilty, Your Honor.” His voice trembled.
Piper’s gaze shifted to Landon. How could he think her brother guilty of murder?
“So noted.” Judge Morrell shifted paper work. “I see the D.A. has cited special circumstances due to the overwhelming evidence against Mr. McKenna.”
Meredith stood. “Yes, Your Honor. I think you will see the evidence against Mr. McKenna is extensive. The D.A. believes it is in the people’s best interest that a grand jury trial be waived and we move straight to setting the trial date.”